Perhaps more than any other garment, the swimsuit has changed beyond all recognition in the last century.One of the most appealing aspects of early 20th century womens swimwear fashion,was the gradual uncovering of her body again after the stuffy and repressed days of the Victorian era.In those days, women were expected to wear even more clothing when they went to the beach!

The Edwardian years saw a gradual change in attitudes, thanks in partto the French women in post first world war Deauville and Biarritz , and to the growing influence of the USA in womens liberation.Liberation of her knees that is - the pursuit of equal rights is still on the agenda in 2010 .

Knitted swimwear was the first big change. very naughty at the time by all counts, those earlyimages of daring women are priceless.Caps were usually made of uncomfortable rubberizedfabric, which discouraged many women from going for anything more than a paddle.

Looking at the timeline of Vintage Swimwear design, some major companies come to mind - in particular the famous Jantzen Swimsuit.

Founded in Portland in 1910,The Jantzen Knitting Mill coined the term swimsuit, instead of bathing costume.Jantzens infamous red diving girl logo came to epitomise the 1920's flappers new found freedom.Hollywood played their part and Max Sennetts Bathing Belles began to adorn magazine advertising all over America.

The popular one piece swimwear design for the 1920's resembled the minidress of the 1960's, and even employed the use of tights!Bathing caps were now made from stretch latex rubber , and were beginning to become a fashion accessory.

Louis Réard unveiled his Bikini in 1946, though two piece swimwear had been aroundfor a good decade by now. He could not find anyone who was willing to wear this stringyskimpy excuse for a swimsuit and subsequently hired model Micheline Bernardini - pictured belowto pose.

It caused a sensation, and still finds its way into the average womans swimming attire to this day.For the record Reard claimed that you do not have a ' genuine' bikini unless you can pull itthrough your wedding ring!

Cannes Film Festival became the glamour capital for a while with the likes ofBrigitte Bardot and Diana Dors turning up in Bikinis.

Most women however stuck with the one piece swimwear.The forerunner of todays Miraclesuit Swimwear was the Corset swimsuit which became popular for women not blessed with a perfectly toned body.Faced with a drop in sales, traditional corsetry manufacturers branched out.Soon, tummy panels and boning with bra cups began to creep into designs.Apron designs were popular and skirted two piece outfits also.